Kodomo
by Steve Einstein
Summary: When Kagami Taiga has chibi!Kiseki no Sedai as his family, his life turns to be an utter chaos. How is he supposed to keep himself sane when he has crazy siblings?
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Kodomo.

**Disclaimer: **Fujimaki Tadatoshi.

**Warning: **AU. NOT yaoi. Brotherhood. Family.

**Summary: **When Kagami Taiga has chibi!Kiseki no Sedai as his family, his life turns to a chaos. He has deal with their craziness while keeping himself sane.

* * *

It was a normal Monday morning for everyone but this particular family that resided in a simple two-storey, single-detached house. It was rather another hectic morning for a guy named Kagami Taiga.

"Taiga, where's my crayfish toy?!" a 6 years old tanned boy poked his head outside of his blue bedroom. "I can't find it!"

"Daiki, forget about your stupid crayfish! Come down and eat your breakfast!" a redhead called Taiga—around his mid-teens—shouted exasperatedly while placing some plates on the dining table. "And Shintarou, stop listening to Oha-Asa! Get down here, NOW!"

A green haired boy replied: "But, I need this! I don't wanna get killed-nanodayo! And can I get a Mashimaro doll? It's my today's lucky item."

"No one is gonna kill you! Like hell I let that happen!" he huffed. "And no! No lucky item!"

He, then, stomped to the bathroom and knocked the door loudly. "Ryouta, stop admiring yourself in front of the mirror! Get out and get dressed!"

"Ehhh?!" a high-pitched voice could be heard from inside. "But, I wanna be a model!"

"Stop daydreaming! Just get out! Or we're gonna late to go to kindergarten!"

Next, Taiga climbed up the stairs, strode towards a room with a sign written 'No enter without snacks! –Atsushi!'. Upon slamming it open, Taiga was startled seeing a tall purple haired kid still sleeping in his purple bed.

"ATSUSHI! WAKE UUUUUUUUUUP!"

"Uhh~? _Yadda_~~~" the purple haired kid buried his head in the pillow and pulled the blanket up.

Taiga had had enough. He clenched the bed sheet and yanked it harshly, causing the kid to fall off his comfy bed. "WAKE UP, I SAID!"

"Uhh~? But, I'm tired and sleepy~~~"

"Save your complains for later. Brush your teeth!" he pointed at the door. "RYOUTA, YOU'RE DONE?!"

"_Hai_~~~" a blonde kid called Ryouta walked past the room, heading to his own yellow bedroom.

"When I get back, I know you're ready," Taiga warned as he went to a bedroom opposite Atsushi's.

"_Hai~_" the giant kid replied.

When Taiga was about to knock the door, the door suddenly was flung open and banged him in his face. The redhead covered his bleeding nose and backed away. Upon casting his gaze downwards, he found a bright red haired with a pair of scissors in his hand.

"Ah, Taiga," the kid simply said.

"Don't 'Ah, Taiga' me! That hurts, you know! And gimme that scissor, Seijuro!"

"Your fault for standing there, and I need this to make people who bully Atsushi cry," the redhead kid nonchalantly brushed past him.

"Atsushi doesn't need you to protect him. You're too short to be his guardian!"

"Yay~ Sei-chin is my protector~~ bad people are running away~"

The tanned boy named Daiki suddenly tackled Taiga's leg, making him almost stumble backward, and shouted happily: "Taiga, let's play basket together!"

"Eh, I wanna play too-ssu!" Ryouta joined in; tackling the taller guy.

"Stop, don't pull my legs! Gonna fall…!"

"Atsushi, crouch down a bit. I want to ruffle your hair."

"Taiga-chin, snacks~"

"Basket! Basket! Basket(-ssu)!"

"I want Mashimaro doll-nanodayo!"

"Wait! Can't find… Tetsuya! Tetsuya, where're you?! TETSUYA—stop pulling my pants!—TETSUYA!"

…

In the kitchen, a light blue haired kid sat idly on the chair, chewing his food. He, then, sighed: "I've been here from earlier. But, he didn't notice me at all."

* * *

**Author's note:** I hope you enjoyed it. I wrote this out just on a **whim**. So, I really don't know whether I should continue it. Well, I leave it to you. If you think this fic is worth to be continued, please tell me so. I'll plan a proper plot for it **if and only **there are enough people vote for it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Title: **Kodomo.

**Disclaimer: **Fujimaki Tadatoshi.

**Warning: **AU. NOT yaoi. Brotherhood. Family. Einstein's experiment.

**Summary (chapter): **Seijurou feels bored and wants something new. Could Taiga make it happen?

* * *

"Taiga, do you have any mind-challenging games?"

A question rose to Seijurou's lips catching Taiga off guard; he almost dropped the laundry basket. The older one couldn't help but gape.

Receiving such a response from his guardian made Seijurou's eyebrow quirk up. The little redhead wanted to pry out what was on the older one's mind. His guardian, Taiga wasn't a complicated person, but somehow he couldn't read his mind at all.

Did he ask a wrong question? Did he ask too much? Or… did he ask something stupid—no, he did _not_ ask something stupid. He, Akashi Seijurou was a highly intelligent child and everyone acknowledged it.

"Again, Seijurou," Taiga finally spoke up.

"I asked; do you have any mind-challenging games?"

"But, why?" Taiga placed the basket down on the floor, his eyes showing concern. "Are you bored playing with them? Or Daiki and Ryouta annoyed the hell out of you again?"

"They both _always_ annoy me, but no!" he held out his hand. "I'm not bored playing with them. They're fun to play with. I just want to train my mind too, not just my body," he looked at his siblings happily playing at the lawn.

"Mind-challenging, huh?" Taiga's lips crooked into a smirk. "Okay, let's have a simple math quiz," Taiga crouched down in front of the kid.

The redhead kid nodded.

"2 plus 2."

"4," Seijurou quickly answered.

"Good. 8 plus 9."

"17."

"21 minus 6."

"15."

"Did your teacher teach you that?" amazement danced in Taiga's eyes. "Okay, next one. It's pretty difficult. You can pass if you want to."

The kid said nothing.

"50 plus 74 minus 161! Hah, 100 yen you can't answer—!"

"—negative 37," the heterochromatic eyed kid cut abruptly.

The older one's jaw dropped. He couldn't believe that kid knew about negative values too. What did he learn at kindergarten? Einstein's Bedanken experiments? Taiga immediately shook his head. Trying to imagine Seijurou holding an encyclopedia and explaining weird equations or theories was too absurd. He thought maybe he should test the kid more.

"Okay, how about this? 395 times 81, then divide by 43!" Taiga knew he was being unfair, asking such a difficult question to a 6-years-old-kid, but, he couldn't help it.

"744.06," Seijurou paused for awhile. "I suppose."

"Eh? Wait up," Taiga quickly fished out his phone and typed the numbers away. "Holysh—" his mouth opened wider when the kid had been right. For instance, Taiga felt so small in front of the small kid. He hung his head in shame. "If only I knew earlier that you were a genius, I could've asked you to answer my exam questions instead."

"You are just too stupid to answer them, and that's a crime, Taiga. You should show a good example in front of a kid, you know," the little redhead replied nonchalantly.

Each word the kid uttered was a knife in Taiga's heart.

"Hey, that hurts, 'kay," he got up. "How about, today, you go play with Atsushi, aaand I'll get you mind-challenging games tomorrow? Sounds great, right?"

"Tomorrow?" Seijirou sighed.

"Yeah."

"Then, promise me," the kid showed his pinky finger.

Taiga beamed. Kids would always be kids. "Okay, my teeth will fall off if I don't keep my promise."

With that, their pinky promise was sealed.

* * *

The next day, Seijurou bugged Taiga again, by bursting into the older one's room while he was changing clothes. Taiga abruptly pulled his shirt down and let out a yelp. Seijurou blinked at him before closing the door again, murmuring 'Sorry'. Once the kid disappeared, Taiga felt like ramming his head against the wall.

Seriously? Yelping?

"Hey, buddy," he found Seijurou leaning his back against the wall, tapping his foot.

"Where's my game?"

Taiga hummed for awhile, knowing exactly what the kid meant. "Before that, did you play with the others? If not, I won't give you your game."

"I did. Atsushi's sleeping at the lawn again," Seijurou answered.

"He's sleeping at the lawn? Wait! Did you say 'again'?!" he scrambled to his feet and handed Seijurou a book of crossword puzzles. "There's your mind-challenging game. Tell me when you've done with it! Dictionary in my shelf; use it if you need it! Well, you're _gonna_ need it," he, then, ran downstairs, leaving Seijurou alone.

Seijurou skimmed through the book, then a smile came to his lips.

Mind-challenging, indeed.

…

After dinner, Seijurou popped out in Taiga's bedroom again, much to his surprise, distracting Taiga from his Physics homework. The little redhead handed the book over.

Taiga cracked a smile. "You need some help, or what?" he'd figured Seijurou wouldn't be able to solve them.

"No," the kid shook his head. "I've finished it, actually."

"What?!" Taiga flipped through the book. "You little—you finished it!"

"I said that a moment ago."

A sigh escaped Taiga's lips. "Then, where's my dictionary?"

"In your shelf. I didn't use it at all."

The older one cast his gaze on the shelf; his dictionary was there. He darted at the kid again. Seijurou could be lying, but his voice wasn't imbued with lies.

"'Kay, I have a book of Sudoku puzzles," he passed the book to Seijurou. "Read the instructions, then try to solve the last puzzle."

The last puzzle was the hardest one; however, Taiga couldn't care less about it. He wanted to know if Seijurou really could pull this off. And, his instinct told him that kid would surprise him again.

When Seijurou was about to leave the room, Taiga tapped his small shoulder, wagging his finger. "Nu uh, do it here. I wanna see you how you solve it."

"Can I use your bed, then?" his heterochromatic eyes fell on Taiga's red bed.

"Sure."

The teenage boy turned his concentration back to his homework, wracking his brain to sort the question that he'd been stuck on out. However, in the end—after a few good minutes, which he felt like eternity—he waved a white flag. It was an impossible mission for a guy named Kagami Taiga after all.

His red eyes drifted over to his bed. Seijurou totally immersed himself in the puzzle. The sight brought a smile to Taiga's lips. Akashi Seijurou was a determined kid. And he was proud to have him under his care.

Then, realization hit him like a tsunami. Seijurou was a twisted, maniac, arrogant, over-confidence, arrogant—wait, did he just say same thing twice?—obsessed with scissors and crazy kid! Why would he be happy having him in his family?! Ridiculous!

"Done," Seijurou's voice snapped his back into reality.

"Huh? Oh? 'Kay. Let… let me see," Taiga stammered. "Whoa… you're really smart, Seijurou," he ruffled Seijurou's hair as he chuckled.

Seijurou flashed a smile of triumph.

"Hm… it's getting late, Seijurou," he glanced at the clock on the nightstand. "Let's go to your bedroom and put you bed. I'll read you a bedtime story."

The little redhead shook his head. "I think I could manage myself, Taiga. You should work on your homework instead. Good night."

Taiga was startled hearing his response. That kid was different. He whispered to himself: "'Nite, Seijurou."

Well, he needed to find something to fish Seijurou's attention. And he knew to whom he should ask.

The redhead took his phone, dialing someone.

"Hey, Tatsuya. It's me, Taiga. I… I kinda… need your help."

* * *

Seijurou observed his siblings—that's what his former guardian had told them; siblings—playing, running around, laughing at each other. Daiki was hanging on one of the branches like a monkey while Ryouta was trying to reach out jumping around for Daiki's feet. Shintarou and Tetsuya were reading a book—about the Little Red Hood, he believed. And Atsushi, who was sitting next to him, dozed off, slightly nodding, causing the snacks in his hoodie to fall off.

He thought even an earthquake of 7 the Richter scale couldn't wake Atsushi up.

The little redhead had given up. No games, by far, could content his heart. No games could give what he wanted. Maybe, mind-challenge games were just like fairy tales. They never existed.

He remembered his late father would find something worth catching his attention. He believed his late father would do anything to keep him happy.

But, he had to accept that his father wouldn't come back for him anymore.

Seijurou let out an exasperated sigh.

"Look to your right, Seijurou."

As he was told, he turned to right, only to find a finger poking his cheek. He looked up, and a smile bloomed on his lips seeing the person.

"Taiga."

"Hey, buddy. Want to play something fun?" Taiga asked as he set a box down.

"Yes," he said. "What's this, Taiga?" Seijurou eyed the box. Atsushi, who'd been dozing off, snapped his head and nudged the box too.

"What's this, Taiga-chin?" Atsushi repeated after Seijurou.

"This?" Taiga opened the box. "It's a Shogi set. It's for Seijurou. Here, read the instruction, Seijurou. We'll play together."

"For Sei-cchi only?" Ryouta loudly chimed in. His voice drew other's attentions. In the matter of seconds, Taiga was swarmed by six colored children.

"Taiga-kun bought a Shogi set for Seijurou-kun? How about us, Taiga-kun?" Tetsuya slipped into Taiga's laps and settled himself there.

"You guys can play too, if you want," Taiga rested his chin on Tetsuya's head, slight shifting to provide more space for Daiki, who was lying on his stomach on Taiga's laps, swinging his legs—or Tetsuya's laps, actually.

"Hey, Taigaaaa~" Daiki drawled. "How we play this thing? What are those wooden blocks for? Playing Dominos?"

"Don't be stupid, Daiki! Of course, they aren't!" Shintarou shouted.

"Shintarou, what did I say about bad words?" Taiga warned, giving Shintarou goose bumps. "No bad words, 'kay?" he playfully flicked Shintarou's forehead as a punishment. Daiki giggled seeing Shintarou's red face.

"Taiga, I'm ready," the little redhead said opening his challenge.

"Don't cry if you lose, okay?" the older redhead grinned.

…

Tears were welling up at the corner of the _older_ redhead's eyes. Taiga couldn't accept that he had lost to a kid! Was he really _that_ stupid?!

"So, Seijurou-kun wins," Tetsuya stated with a dead pan face. "Figured."

"Hey, what do you mean by that, Tetsuya? And get off my laps! They're getting numb!" he just couldn't believe the soft blue-haired kid picked on him.

"I can't, Taiga-kun. Daiki's sleeping on my laps," the kid looked down.

Taiga craned his neck. Indeed, the tanned boy was sleeping soundly. So did the blonde and the purple-haired kid—sprawling on the floor, Ryouta used Atsushi as his pillow. Guess, Shogi weren't for them. However, it shocked Taiga that Shintarou managed to stay awake through the game—though, the game was only lasted for ten minutes. Shogi wasn't for Taiga, too.

"I think I can play this game too. Say, Seijurou, play me?" Shintarou offered.

"Of course," the little redhead replied.

The older one carefully lifted Daiki up as not to let the kid awake, giving Tetsuya spaces to move, and sat near to the megane and the heterochromatic eyed kid to watch them playing. Daiki didn't budge even after Taiga had laid him back on his laps. Tetsuya leaned his side to Taiga's and smiled up to the kids.

Taiga glanced at the heterochromatic eyed kid and he realized Seijurou's eyes sparkling through the game. Like he'd just received his Christmas present.

Seems that Taiga had finally found something worth catching Seijurou's attention. And he was happy with it.

Though, soon, Taiga joined his brothers sleeping too while Seijurou and Shintarou continued playing.

Seeing his guardian sleep made Seijurou's heart content. Because he knew, even though his father wouldn't be there to keep him happy, Taiga would.

* * *

**Author's note: **Finally, it's become a multichapters fic. Thank you for your supports and such!

To LicaToRiku: I laughed at that review! LOL! Honestly, I myself don't know what I should write for this fic. Yet, here we are, another chapter. Whoop! We'll see what happen later.

To Salty-sama: They still have their last name. I purposely let it be because it's too troublesome to change their last name. Like, Kagami Tetsuya or Kagami Ryouta, seriously? If you realize from this chapter, Akashi Seijurou is an orphan. That implies to the others too. Whether their history will be unfolded or not, why don't we just follow the flow. ;)

Anyway, suggestions are always welcome! :D


	3. Chapter 3

**Title: **Kodomo.

**Disclaimer: **Not mine.

**Warning: **AU. NOT yaoi. Brotherhood. Family. Little fight.

**Summary (chapter): **Atsushi feels sad, but why?

* * *

It was a general knowledge that a purple haired kid named Murasakibara Atsushi had a real sweet tooth (problem—for Taiga). Seeing him swarm with sweets and snacks was a normal view for everyone who had known him. In fact, visiting bakeries was part of his daily routine.

And just like another normal day, Atsushi had got himself a bag of chocolate chip cookies. He poured a glass of milk and settled himself on the chair. When he was about to wish 'Itadakimasu,' his ears caught Daiki's voice calling out his name. Grumbling in annoyance, Atsushi placed the bag on the table and left in rush.

…

That evening, the house was thundered with an angry scream. The living room was a full horror. The table was upside down. Books and toys were everywhere. Shattered vase on the floor. Spilled coffee decorating the wall. Broken window glass. Torn papers.

It was a mess!

Taiga took a deep breath scanning the room. He was completely flabbergasted. The children stood next to him, thousands of questions flooding their minds. His hand reached out to stop Daiki from entering the room. Tetsuya wriggled an eyebrow in confusion. Taiga replied with shaking head.

In the middle of ruined room, there stood the cause of mayhem.

Atsushi stood there, panting heavily.

Creeping around on tiptoes, Taiga skillfully dodged the shattered vase and approached the giant kid. "Hey, Atsushi, you okay?" he gently placed an arm around his shoulder, hoping the kid would calm down.

Heavy pants answered him.

"Hey, buddy. Look at me," Taiga cupped Atsushi's grumpy face. "Tell me what happened."

After a few snippets of soothing words, finally Atsushi gave a reply. Or rather a word; "Cookies…"

"Cookies?"

"Someone ate my cookies!" the giant kid yelled at the top his voice, startling Taiga. Panting heavily, Atsushi tore his gaze away from Taiga's. Shaking voice, imbued with emotions, Atsushi added; "I left it on the table, then it's gone! It's gone! It's gone! IT'S GONE!"

Taiga's mind suddenly clicked off. "You mean _the_ chocolate chip cookies?"

That'd got Atsushi's attention.

"Ah, that one," Taiga scratched his head nervously. "Sorry, Atsushi, it was me. I was too hungry, so I—"

Without letting Taiga finish off his sentence, Atsushi immediately pushed his guardian away. Sniffling to himself, Atsushi screamed with all his might; "I helped Baker-san for those cookies! I helped clean his bakery! I helped him feed cats! I helped him and he gave me those cookies! And Taiga-chin ate it! Taiga-chin ate it! I hate Taiga-chin! I hate you! I hate you so much!" and the kid stormed off to his room, pushing his way through five colored children, rendering Taiga speechless.

The loud bang of door roused them from their stupor. Daiki turned to see his shocked guardian and sang out; "Ah, ah, ah~ Taiga made Atsushi cry~ Taiga is a bad guy~ Bad guy~"

The older teen shook his head vigorously. To his fear, Taiga could feel an ominous aura drowned him in. Snipping sounds sliced through the air, jolting him up. Taiga's eyes slowly drifted over one kid to another until they fell on a pair of dual-colored eyes.

"Taiga, you made Atsushi cry," Seijurou's voice cut the air.

"Wait, wait, wait, waaaaait! I'll make it up! I promise!" Taiga stepped back, flailing his hands in defense. "Don't kill me!" Nevertheless, the gleaming of scissors told him Seijurou refused to accept it.

"Seijurou-kun, please don't kill him," Tetsuya came for rescue. "You don't want to kill him, right?"

After a moment of silence, Seijurou muttered 'fine'.

…

A delicious smell of freshly baked cookies wafted through the air as Taiga stood there, in front of Atsushi's room. He looked at the tray in his hands for a moment before swallowing down his pride and knocking the door.

"Atsushi, open the door. I've got some cookies for you."

"_Yadda! _I don't want to see you!" came a reply from the room.

"I even made extra! C'mon, buddy, I'm sorry, okay?!"

"I said, I don't want to see you! GO AWAY!"

It made Taiga back away a little. He couldn't deny it pierced his heart. But, Atsushi's feeling was his top priority now. Besides, a very sharp scissors was waiting for him if he didn't accomplish this mission. Really…

"Hey, I'm really, really sorry. It's cool if you don't want to see me, but I'll leave the cookies here, okay?"

And he left, laden with broken heart.

…

"The Yellow Ranger and The Green Ranger come with a report-ssu!" Ryouta saluted happily, standing before his guardian, who was sitting on the chair, deciding to play along with Ryouta's little game. "The Green Ranger has the full report-ssu!"

"We recorded the time. It took Atsushi 6 minutes and 58 seconds before finally touched the cookies-nanodayo," Shintarou adjusted his spectacles and held his bunny—lucky item—tighter.

"What?! That bad?!" Taiga thumped the table. Then, he could feel a pair of cold scissors pressing against his throat—or was it just his imagination? "Hey, Seijurou, I told you, I'll make it up, right?"

Seijurou didn't say anything.

"But, Atsushi is very, very angry this time. It's a real deal, Taiga," Daiki took a cookie from the plate.

Daiki was right—Taiga hated it when the children hit the right spot. It made him feel like an idiot. Sighing, Taiga rested his face in his cupped hand. "What to do…"

"You could ask Tatsuya-kun regarding this matter, Taiga-kun. They're quite close," Tetsuya sipped his vanilla shake nonchalantly. The older teen blinked at him. "Just a suggestion."

Again, Taiga felt like ramming his head against the table. Why didn't he think about it earlier?!

~oo0oo~

Like birds in the beautiful morning, the six colored children chorused harmoniously in the living room, singing their game song. Of course, it had riveted Taiga's attention, who was talking to the phone.

"Tatsuya, half a mo," he simultaneously said and cradled the phone between his ear and shoulder, picking up the laundry basket along. He watched the children sit in a circle and sing happily.

"Aka bomb, Aka bomb, Aka bomb to Mura bomb~" Seijurou sang.

"Mura bomb, Mura bomb, Mura bomb to Ao bomb~" Atsushi glanced at Daiki.

"Ao bomb, Ao bomb, Ao bomb to Mido bomb~" Daiki pointed his index finger at Shintarou.

"Mido bomb, Mido bomb, Mido bomb to Kise bomb~" Shintarou took a deep breath, feeling relieved he'd managed to respond quickly.

"Kise bomb, Kise bomb, Kise bomb to Kuro bomb~" Ryouta gave a sunny smile.

"Kuro bomb, Kuro bomb, Kuro bomb to Mura bomb~" Tetsuya sent an apologetic smile to the giant kid.

"Mura bomb, Mura bomb, Mura bomb to Mido bomb," the pace was quickened.

"Mido bomb, Mido bomb, Mido bomb to Kuro bomb," Shintarou bombed Tetsuya.

"Kuro bomb, Kuro bomb, Kuro bomb to Ao bomb."

"Ao bomb, Ao bomb, Ao bomb to Kuro bomb!"

"Kuro bomb, Kuro bomb, Kuro bomb to Ao bomb," Tetsuya increased the pace to a higher level, scheming to kill his brother.

"Ao bomb, Ao bomb, Ao bomb to Kise bomb!" Without any warning, Daiki ambushed a flustered Ryouta, who had been witnessing their little war game, to Ryouta's dismay. Ryouta failed to respond.

"Aw, I lose~," Ryouta whined, turning around to wipe his tears. Even though it was just a game, it broke Ryouta's little heart. He hated losing, after all. Then, his eyes fell on Taiga's feet. A mischievous grin widened. Ryouta joined the circle again, whispering to his brothers.

"What are you guys playing?" Taiga crouched down, curious eating him up.

Together, they chorused; "RAINBOW BOMB, RAINBOW BOMB, RAINBOW BOMB TO KAGA BOMB!"

"Huh?"

"Taiga doesn't defend himself, so Taiga is dead!" Daiki shouted, throwing a triumph punch of his.

"Oh, if I don't reply, I'll be dead?" After receiving nods from the children, Taiga beamed. "Then, I'm dead," Taiga feigned death, pain etched on his face, clutching his heart. He landed on the floor in a dramatic slow motion—pretending, of course—and softly whispered 'sorry, everyone.'

A brooding silence fell upon them.

A second later, the room was deluged with panic, cries and screams 'No, Taiga, don't die yet!', 'Taiga, don't leave us!', 'I'm sorry, Taiga! Don't leave me alone!' The older teen was almost suffocated by their hands shaking his body, so he quickly scuffled up for air. It nudged them out of their Kafkaesque thoughts, ceasing them. Tears scalded their eyes.

Except Atsushi, who was still angry at his guardian.

Feeling guilty and shamed that he had—probably—put the children back through the trauma, Taiga whispered a prayer of apology to God for being foolish and embraced them. "Don't worry, I'm still here, right?"

"Taiga-kun won't leave us?" in a shaky, tiny voice, Tetsuya asked.

"No. I'll stay with you forever."

"And me?" Shintarou held his guardian tighter.

"Yeah, that adds another forever. Seijurou too. Atsushi too. Ryouta and Daiki. So, I have six 'forevers' to stay with you guys," he answered in a soothing voice, pouring relief over their hearts.

"You're talking nonsense again, Taiga, but I'll take your word for it," Seijurou chuckled. His sniffles had died away. Even though he had a heart of stone, Taiga meant the world to the redhead. Without his dear tiger, there would be a big hole in his little world.

The purple haired kid noticed the phone in Taiga's hand. Atsushi picked the phone—it surprised Taiga—and said; "Hello?"

"Hey there, is that Atsushi?" small chuckles escaped the caller.

"Tatsu-chin~!"

"Bingo," the chuckles grew louder. "I heard you angry at Taiga, Atsushi. Did Taiga bully you?"

"Yeah, Taiga-chin is so bad. Taiga-chin ate my cookies," Atsushi puffed out his cheeks in annoyance. "I don't like Taiga-chin," his childish complain earned giggles from Taiga. The older redhead heaved a sigh of contentment watching Atsushi pace back and forth. It was a rare sight to see him talking so much. Tatsuya really knew how to talk with the kid.

"I see. You're telling me you don't like Taiga?" the empathy session has begun without the giant kid realizing of it.

"Yeah, he ate my cookies! I don't want to see him or talk to him anymore!"

"Taiga… ate your cookies?"

"Yes!"

"Did he say sorry?"

That rendered the kid speechless. Atsushi eyed his guardian suspiciously. Taiga responded with a small smile, wondering what was on Atsushi's mind. The kid went back to the phone. "Uh huh, he said sorry. And he even made me cookies. A lot of them," he bit his bottom lips. "I love his cookies. I want to eat more. I want him to make more cookies. So, he can't leave me! Because I like Taiga-chin and his cookies so much."

"So, you like Taiga," his tone was calm.

"No. I don't like Taiga-chin," he paused, then in a voice cracking with emotion, he told Tatsuya; "I love Taiga-chin," again, the kid burst into tears, running to hug his guardian. "Taiga-chin, I'm sorry! Don't leave me! You can eat my cookies! You can have my snacks, but don't leave me! Please!"

Taiga cradled the little giant and patted his back. "I told you, remember? I have six 'forevers' to stay with you."

* * *

**Author's note: **I deeply apologize for the late installment or any mistakes that you found here. orz Actually, I did the last part of the story first, so you may find it a little awkward there. Silly me.

To Kuroshiroryuu: I'll take your suggesstion into account, but first, I have to learn how to play it. Hehehe...

To LicaToRiku: He needs to learn it all by himself -Akashi.


	4. Chapter 4

**Title: **Kodomo.

**Disclaimer: **Not mine.

**Warning: **AU. NOT yaoi. Brotherhood. Family. More fights.

**Summary (chapter): **Thousands of heavy thoughts cross Daiki's mind.

* * *

"Aomine-kun, stop running!" Riko-sensei's exasperated scream echoed through the kindergarten lawn, hands reaching out to stop a running Daiki.

"Haha~ Sensei can't catch me~ Sensei can't catch me~" Daiki sang out, sticking out his tongue at his teacher. Turning his head back, he saw a woman cuddle a crying boy outside of the kindergarten, a smile spreading across her face. His ears caught soft whisper 'Don't worry, mommy isn't going to leave you. I love you so much.'

Daiki dropped his pace to a halt, staring at the mother with a rapt expression. His heart suddenly clenched, to his own surprise. "Eh? My chest hurts," he was confused, and he felt a pool of tears form at the corner of his eyes. "Eh?"

However, a sudden flying tackle from Riko-sensei roused him from his stupor. Riko-sensei gripped him tightly on his waist, gritting her teeth. "You little brat…"

The tanned kid flailed wildly, trying to free himself from Riko-sensei's deathly clutch. Unfortunate for Daiki, she rewarded him a huge golf ball on his head. Daiki groaned in pain as he held his sore head.

"Why can't you behave like other kids? Look at Mitobe-kun," she pointed at the quiet kid, who was seen arranging books on the table. "Be like him!"

"Bleh, he's showing off," Daiki bit out.

"Hey, don't say such things to Mitobe," a mewboy suddenly appeared and fired back. "He's kind! Ne, Mitobe?"

Mitobe nodded.

"See?!" the meowboy said. "He told me, his mother loves good kid! Every mother does!"

Riko-sensei almost face palmed. "How did you understand—" then, she felt gloomy aura encase the atmosphere. She cast her gaze down, and the sight startled her. Daiki's face was darkened. "Aomine-kun, you okay?"

The boy didn't say anything.

Anxiety devoured her. Riko-sensei turned Daiki to face him. She brought up Daiki's face. "Aomine-kun, you okay? Did I hurt you? Tell me."

"Ne, Sensei," Daiki's voice dropped to another octave. "Does my mom hate me?"

"Eh?" the brunette was taken aback by Daiki's unexpected question.

"I'm a bad kid, that's why my mom and dad hate me," Daiki lowered his gaze. "So they left me alone."

"What?! No, of course your mom and dad love you!" her eyes widened in surprise.

"Then, why mom and dad left me?" Daiki asked again. "Mitobe's mom loves him, so she stays with him. But, why my mom left me?"

Her heart dropped almost immediately. Riko-sensei bit her bottom lip. No answer crossed her mind. She hit the huge wall. "Ano… Aomine-kun, you got it wrong. Well, you see…" her eyes wandered all over places but Daiki, looking for a reasonable answer. She remembered Taiga had told her Daiki's parents died in a terrible accident and Daiki was the only survivor, losing some parts of memories—apparently, he'd forgotten about his parents' death. But, no way could she say such a grim truth, could she?

"They hate me, after all," Daiki weakly pushed her off. He walked past his teacher, shoulders sinking. Riko-sensei's eyes followed him as guilty jabbed her heart.

~oo0oo~

The colored children were playing mini basketball happily in their lawn, ignoring the fact the sun had begun to pass its throne. Seijurou ran past Shintarou as Atsushi helped him screen the megane boy. Ryouta came forward to stop the little redhead. However, Seijurou skillfully faked to the left, startling the blond, before passing the ball to Tetsuya, who was standing not far from the mini goal post. "Tetsuya, shoot!"

With serious expression painting on Tetsuya's face, he aimed and pushed the ball off his palm. It looked perfect, however it missed the ring and landed on the backboard. Tetsuya seemed a little shocked. Even worse, the ball bounced and hit in Daiki's face. He stumbled backward to the ground. No movement at all.

Panic rushed into their minds. "DAIKI/DAI-CCHI/DAI-CHIN/DAIKI-KUN!" they sprinted to the fallen kid.

Taiga had heard the scream and went to check the lawn. "What's going on?" he appeared into the scene.

"Daiki is unconscious," Seijurou said.

"What the…?!" he crouched down to examine Daiki. "Hey, little guy, wake up," Taiga lightly slapped Daiki's cheek. "C'mon, don't sleep here."

"Is Daiki-kun okay?" Tetsuya shook Daiki's body. "Daiki-kun, don't sleep here. Ghost will come and kidnap you," his voice wavered. Fear began to fill his little heart. "Daiki-kun, please wake up. I'll get angry if you keep sleeping."

The magic word awoke him, to their relief. The little tanned boy pulled himself into sitting position, covering his nose. Blood dripped from his nose. Taiga saw it, so he fished a handkerchief out of his pocket—having crazy sibling force him to bring a handkerchief, in case of emergency—and gently wiped the blood off.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow," Daiki groaned.

"Hold on, little guy," Taiga said in a soothing voice. Then, he scooped Daiki up, carrying him into the house for a proper treatment. The colored children tailed behind the guardian like a train. He brought Daiki to the kitchen and sat him up on the chair, turning around to get the first-aid kit. The children circled around the tanned kid.

"Ne, Daiki-kun, I'm very, very sorry. I didn't mean it," Tetsuya fiddled his thumbs.

Daiki stared at the light blue haired boy. Tetsuya flinched a little. He was expecting some silly words exploding out of Daiki's mouth like 'naah, you should improve your shooting skill' or 'stupid Tetsu, do it properly next time!', but a reply came out; "Whatever," Daiki dropped his gaze to the floor.

Tetsuya gasped. He wasn't expecting a monotone reply from Daiki. Something is wrong! He held Daiki's small hand. "Daiki-kun, please say something."

"…"

"Daiki-kun, I—"

"—SHUT UP!" Daiki snapped, making Tetsuya step back. His siblings were shocked. "You are too noisy! Why can't you just shut up?!" he shouted. Daiki couldn't get rid the heavy thoughts lingering in his mind. It irked him so much. And Tetsuya's words made it even worse.

"You shouldn't shout like that, Daiki," Seijurou stood between Daiki and Tetsuya. "He's worried about you."

"His voice is annoying!" Daiki barked out. Tetsuya hid behind Atsushi.

"Dai-cchi, don't say like that! You're making Tetsu-cchi sad!" Ryouta chided.

"And _you_ are annoying!" the tanned boy turned to see Ryouta. What's wrong with them? Can't they just leave him alone?!

"Daiki," Shintarou pushed up his spectacles. "Are you okay, Daiki? You're acting weird today."

"Acting weird? Me? And how about you?! Carrying that stupid figurine around like a girl! Who's weird, huh?!"

"DAIKI!" Seijurou yelled.

"SHUT UP!"

Heavy pants were heard. The atmosphere was getting darker and darker.

"Dai-chin is making everyone upset," Atsushi broke the silence. "Dai-chin is a bad boy."

That startled Daiki. His heart stopped momentarily. His brain was trying to register Atsushi's word. Taiga's worried voice snapped him back into reality. He looked at the floor, shadow hiding his face. Dark laugh escaped Daiki's lips. "Yeah, I'm a bad boy. I'm a bad boy."

"Daiki?" Taiga called out.

"Yes, I am a bad boy!" he snapped his head up. "That's why mom and dad left me! They hate me because I'm a bad boy!" despite the laughter, tears visibly streamed down his face. "And now, everyone hates me!" he jumped from the chair and sprinted to his bedroom.

"What the hell was that…" Taiga muttered.

…

No one touched their dinner, staring at the table morosely. An air of gloom settled over the kitchen. Taiga breathed a sigh seeing the children drop their head. "Okay, what's wrong now?"

"It feels lonelier without Dai-cchi," Ryouta clenched his pants.

"It's too quiet without Dai-chin's loud voice," the little giant pushed his bowl away.

"Daiki may be stupid and naughty, but I miss his voice," Shintarou looked down.

"Daiki-kun must be very hungry," Tetsuya rested his chin on the table, rolling the chopsticks.

"We don't want to eat without Daiki," at last, Seijurou spoke on behalf of his brothers.

The older teen smiled. "Then, do you hate Daiki for his doing?" Taiga thought he should dig deeper to know their feelings toward the tanned kid.

"Hate? NO!" they answered simultaneously. Then, faint blush crept up their faces, realizing they had just synchronized with each other.

"I mean," Seijurou said, his blush fading away. "We are kind of angry at him, but we don't hate him. Why would we? He's our brother, right?" the little redhead to look around, only to receive nods from his brothers.

"Fine, then," Taiga got up from the chair. "I'll talk to him, okay?"

"Yes, do that," mischievous gleamed in Seijurou's heterochromatic eyes. "We are going to think about Daiki's punishment."

Taiga just shook his head in amusement.

…

"Hey there, little guy," Taiga slipped his head into Daiki's room, only to find the kid lying in the bed, facing the wall. He approached the bed and sat on it. Taiga ruffled Daiki's hair. "You okay?"

A sniffle was heard.

"Hey, you can talk with me," Taiga said.

In a shaking voice, Daiki asked; "Do you hate me?"

"No, I don't hate you. Never," Taiga's lips curled into a smile.

"You won't leave me?" finally, Daiki turned around, resting his head on Taiga's lap. He clenched his guardian's shirt tightly.

"Of course no. We've discussed about this before. I'm not going to leave you guys."

"That's great," dry chuckles came out. Daiki sniffled again. "Ne, Taiga, do my mom and dad hate me?"

Taiga paused. Daiki said 'do' instead of 'did'. He knew the kid had lost some parts of memories—Alex told him, but he'd never expected it's his parents' death. "No, they love you," he played along. Taiga couldn't bring himself to tell Daiki the truth.

"Then, why they left me? The guy in white coat said they won't see me again," Daiki asked again.

The older teen knew 'the guy in white coat' was the doctor who treated Daiki before. It seemed Daiki had misunderstood the doctor's meaning—not that he blamed Daiki or the doctor. Taiga must clear Daiki's cloudy mind.

"They… didn't leave you. They just went for a very long vacation."

"Then, why didn't they bring me along?"

"Because they want to Daiki experience a lot of things before meeting them," Taiga cheered up. "So one day, when you meet them again, you have a lot of stories to share with them. Then, they will know you're happy staying here with us!"

Behind the cheerful expression, Taiga face palmed at his lame lies. No way Daiki—

"Really?!" sparkles returned into Daiki's blue eyes.

"Uh, ye… yeah." The kid really bought it.

"Then, I'll be a good kid and do a lot of fun things together!" Daiki shot his body up in excitement. "I'll play with Tetsu, Ryouta, Atsushi, Shintarou and Seijurou!"

"Great, go tell your parents about your brothers," Taiga grinned.

"And I'll play basket with Taiga every day, and tell my mom and dad how awesome you are!" Daiki suddenly hugged Taiga, to Taiga's surprise. "Taiga is the best brother ever!"

Happiness clenched Taiga's heart. He slowly returned Daiki's embrace. "You're a great brother too."

…

At the dining table, Daiki went rigid, watching his brothers nervously. Taiga had suggested him to come down and apologize to his brothers. It seemed easier when Taiga told him. However, their judgment looks put him under pressure. "I'm… sorry for yelling at you guys."

"Really?" skeptical tweaked in Seijurou's tone.

"Ye—yes! I'm truly sorry! I was thinking too much! I didn't mean to yell at you guys…" Daiki's voice trailed off. "I'm very, very sorry. Especially to Tetsu," he glanced at the light blue haired kid.

Finally, Tetsuya smiled. "Apology is accepted. After all, Daiki-kun is having PMS."

Taiga almost choked on his drink. "What the—Tetsuya, what are you talking about?!"

"I read that girls have mood swings when they are having their PMS," Tetsuya hummed. "Ne, Taiga-kun, what's PMS?"

"Yes, what's that?" the word had sparked Shintarou's curiosity.

"Can we eat it?" Atsushi asked.

"Can we play with it?!" Ryouta chimed in.

Meanwhile, Taiga went red in the face, matching with his red hair. Seijurou let out a sigh, knowing the meaning behind PMS. "Let's forget about that. Now, Daiki," he shoot Daiki a stern look. "I know Tetsuya has forgiven you, however, it doesn't mean you could get away from the punishment. After all, what you've said was very harsh."

"Oh, okay. What's the punishment, then?" Daiki braced himself. It couldn't be that bad, right?

"You can't sleep with your crayfish doll tonight," Seijurou said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"WHAT?! THAT'S NOT FAIR!" Daiki screeched. "Taiga, do something!"

"You reap what you sow," Taiga nonchalantly stuffed the chicken breast into his mouth, ignoring Daiki's cries.

"I'M TAKING BACK MY WORD! TAIGA'S MEANIE!"

* * *

**Author's note: **I'm so freaking happy receiving such great responses from you guys! Thanks! Honestly, I felt a great pressure while writing this. I even had to recall all my bro fights just to know those feelings. But, I shall thank my sister for giving me such a great idea in a very subtle way (she suddenly told me that my little bro and I share a very strong bond despite of those fights that we've had).

Enough with my rants. Till then~ (wait, do you realize this story is updated monthly?)


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